OFFICER Magazine's Last-Minute Holiday Gift Ideas

Have you been searching for a last minute gift for the law enforcement professional in your life? Here are a few quick ideas, although several of them aren’t cheap—not by a long shot.

This article appeared in the November/December issue of OFFICER Magazine. Click Here to view the digital edition. Click Here to subscribe to OFFICER Magazine.

The FN 509 MRD-LE pistol is, hands down, one of the most forward thinking contemporary designs on the market today. With a (full size) capacity of 17+1 9mm rounds, a flat trigger that breaks cleanly at a 90 degree angle from the barrel alignment and ready to accept most of the available red dot sights (RDS) in today’s market, this weapon is easy to shoot accurately. The elevated sights allow for cowitnessing through the RDS should such a need arise and a number of manufacturers are making holsters for the weapon.

Any folding knife from Zero Tolerance. Every law enforcement professional I know carries a folding knife, if not two, on duty. A quality, sturdy, sharp and easy to maintain folding knife is a great value and the officer simply never knows when such knife will be needed. When it IS needed, it’s not optional.

The Streamlight Wedge is a handy, rechargeable, LED-driven flashlight that differs from most in that it’s flat instead of round. The flashlight body is shaped like a rectangle and there’s a clip on one side that allows it to be clipped into a pocket just like a folding knife. Further, it allows for two levels of light, both of which are usually more than adequate for any task at hand. Yes, almost everyone uses their cell phone as a flashlight these days, but there are circumstances when that light isn’t enough for use is too tedious/time consuming to work correctly.

The Streamlight TLR-1 (or other weapon mounted lights) is handy and functional and fits on almost every duty handgun (or off-duty handgun) you can find. While properly using a weapon mounted light takes training and must be done in conformation to agency policy, they are a reality of life at a great many departments and can be very handy on off-duty weapons used for home or personal defense.

Talon Grips are a very inexpensive and easily applied customization to most handguns. Available in several different textures and colors, they increase tactile sensation between the shooter’s hand and the weapon’s grip and that’s hard to put a value on since it matters so much. Many of today’s polymer handgun frames are slick if they are wet (like when the shooter’s hand is sweaty) and not as easy to maintain a proper grip on. For $20 (about) the Talon Grips are an easy and valuable fix.

The Bushnell RXS-250 red dot sight isn’t one you normally see recommended for handguns but it fits nicely (no adaptor needed) on the FN 509 mentioned above. The battery lasts for a published 50,000 hours and is easy to replace when the time comes. The auto-off feature kicks in at 12 hours of use so burning out a 50K hour battery is going to take… a lifetime.

The Safariland Assent pro-fit holster for the FN 509 works well and offers a secure off-duty carry option, allowing the duty weapon to be an off-duty option. Available in brown or black, it’s a great “side by side” gift for the FN 509 or for an officer who already has such a weapon.

This article appeared in the November/December issue of OFFICER Magazine.